The Crook and The Canary: Extraction
by ManderKitteh
Summary: Takes place almost directly after the first of my LoT fics "The Crook and The Canary: No Man Left Behind" and is second in the series. SPOILERS FOR 1x15 and anything that may happen after that. Sorta my take on the crew's next step after rescuing their teammate from the Oculus. Sara sits the first mission out due to a concussion aggravated by the time jump. Captain Canary af.


"What the hell, Rip?" Sara exclaimed.

The two time travelers stood on opposing sides of the table in the control room of the Waverider. Ray, Mick, Jax, and Martin sat in their respective jumpseats while their captain and colleague argued. Captain Hunter had just finished briefing the team on the details of their next assignment, which involved time jumping to 2166 and rescuing Kendra and Carter from the clutches of Vandal Savage. The team, save for Sara and Snart, had been requested to suit up and join the rescue mission. The assassin had protested instantly, anxious to help her teammate and now friend.

"You're in no condition to assist, Miss Lance," Rip countered. "Gideon's scan of your injuries after Mr. Snart's rescue has revealed a concussion and multiple contusions."

Sara's mouth dropped open. "So you're benching me? Because of a headache and some bruises?"

She knew he was right - ever since her return to the Waverider her symptoms had gotten worse, but she would never tell Rip that. The volume of the debate alone was enough to make her head throb, her sensitivity to both noise and light gravely increasing. Gideon had done a full body scan during the time she was at Leonard's side in the medbay without her knowledge, and unfortunately, was now using that information against her. Sara had been concussed before - after all, you don't endure vigorous training in the League of Assassins without a few bumps to the head - but, since she had always been on her own on those missions, she had never had someone care enough about her condition to demand she take a break.

She pinched the bridge of her nose as Rip responded.

"I'm sorry, Sara, but believe me when I say I know what's best. The time jump will aggravate your injuries even further, and it will be comforting for us to know there is someone on board the ship at all times who is capable of piloting it, if need be. But don't worry, I'm sure Mr. Snart will be willing to help keep you occupied."

With a roll of her eyes, Sara stalked out of the room. She made her way past her and Kendra's bedroom, hung a left, and stopped at the door in front of her. She knocked several times and waited.

"Come in."

The door slid open to her touch and she entered, leaning her shoulder against the door frame. Leonard was sprawled across his comforter, crutches leaning against the edge of the bed. His leg was wrapped from his hip down past his knee in a thick ace bandage. He turned his attention away from the novel he was reading when he heard the door open, and placed it face down on top of his chest.

"Looks like I'm stuck with you again."

Snart raised an eyebrow.

"Concussion. Rip's making me sit this one out," she elaborated.

He turned his head to the ceiling and said, "Didn't think a little bump would be enough to put you on the sidelines." He chuckled. "Did Rip bribe you into taking care of me? What did he offer you, some new weapons? A nice dress?" He faked a gasp and turned back to her "Your own room when Kendra gets back?"

She smirked back at him. "That's quite a bit of confidence you've got in them, 'When Kendra gets back.'"

His smile fell. "You rescued me, didn't you?"

She nodded. It took a lot of planning and a couple of scrapes and bruises, but Leonard Snart was most definitely alive and well. Sara couldn't imagine the weight she would be feeling had they not succeeded. She shook the feeling away and headed to his dresser, opening the top drawer, and pulling out a deck of cards.

Leonard straightened and scooted over to make room for Sara, who sat cross legged beside him, her back resting on the board at the foot of the bed. She shuffled the cards and dealt. Silence fell for a few hands before Snart spoke again.

"How long was I gone?"

"What?"

"How long was I dead before you came back for me?"

Sara looked up from her hand to meet his eyes. His gaze was intense, a deep blue staring back at her. She swallowed hard, not wanting to relive a moment of his absence, but he deserved to know.

"A couple of hours. Mick and I wanted to come sooner but it took a while for the guys to get the parts for the Oculus-whatever working right." She looked back down at her hand and picked a card to toss.

Leonard picked it up and laid a set down, tossing another from his hand.

"And how was Mick?" he drawled casually, trying to hide his concern.

Sara weighed her options, electing to draw from the deck. "He was… confused, at first. Then pissed. I'm pretty sure he threatened Rip a couple of times, but he would have gotten over it. Eventually."

"And you?" he asked.

" _He made his feelings very clear."_

" _And what about your feelings?"_

" _About you?"_

She paused, hands falling to rest in her lap. "I-"

"Captain Hunter has requested all passengers meet in the control room to prepare for the time jump." Gideon's voice interrupted.

The two time travellers simultaneously released a breath, one in relief, and one in disappointment.

Sara stood and grabbed Snart's crutches. She handed them to him and helped him to his feet. They made their way to the control room slowly, Sara always a step or two ahead. She knew they would have to talk about it, and was relieved when the topic did not emerge during his recovery process in the medbay. It was only a matter of time before he brought it up again, though. Unsure of how to respond, she was glad Gideon had interrupted them, though she was positive had they not been sidetracked, she would have won their game. Not that they were keeping score.

When they got to the control room, the rest of the team was already strapped in. Once Sara and Leonard were ready, Rip commanded Gideon to plot a course for 2166.

* * *

The time ship rocked and tumbled, Rip piloting them past missiles and laser beams. They flipped and rolled to avoid collisions with other ships as explosions on the surface of the Earth below them reverberated through the Waverider and pounded in Sara's head. With each jerk of the timeship a sharp twinge shot from the base of her skull down to her neck and past her shoulders. The sounds of buildings erupting below them pounded against her eardrums, her eyes blurring from the light of the control room.

She pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes, the pressure relieving some pain at the front of her forehead. Her pulse was strong against her palms, her shirt thick with sweat. The frantic motion of the Waverider slowly decreased as Rip found a safe place for landing, far beyond the fighting. As it steadied, the ship descended into a small clearing in a sea of trees.

The team removed their restraints and began suiting up. Sara and Leonard remained seated, her hands now rubbing circles at her temples. She groaned and closed her eyes.

"I think you'll find this a much needed recovery, Miss Lance. Everyone else, let's go." Rip said, as he lead Martin, Jax, Ray, and Mick off of the ship.

"Gideon," Snart said, "Lights to 60%, please."

The room dimmed and Sara groaned. "I don't need you to do that. I can take care of myself," she said.

He got to his feet, pulling his crutches tight beneath his arms. "I know," he said, before crutching out of the room. He headed toward the medbay, leaving Sara alone in the control room.

 _This sucks._

Her vision began to even out and the pain relaxed to a dull throbbing at the front of her skull. She sat in silence for several minutes, trying to think of something to do to pass the time.

"I take it I'm not allowed to read or watch TV."

"It would not be recommended," the AI responded.

"And no music?"

"It would not be recommended," Gideon repeated.

 _This_ really _sucks._

* * *

The refugee camp was small, but sufficient enough. Several survivors had agreed to follow Rip and the rest of the team in their efforts to liberate those held captive by Savage. The villain had taken several hostages to ensure the compliance of those in the camp, including an eight year old girl, whose father had been killed during the fighting, and whose mother, Natasha, had given a moving speech to the refugees in order to convince them to fight alongside the time travelers.

While Rip went over battle plans with the leaders of the renegades, Martin and Ray distributed weapons, teaching each individual how to operate them. The plan consisted of using Gideon to track Savage's movements through the woods, and ambush him when he was least protected. Once he was engaged in battle with several members of the team, Ray and Rip would break into his timeship to free Kendra and Carter. If all went according to plan, the Hawks, Ray, and Rip would be able to meet back up with the rest of the team to end Savage, once and for all.

"Is everyone clear on the plan?" Rip asked, to which everyone responded with a nod. "Remember, do _not_ engage Savage on your own. Wait for the signal from Jax, then hit him with everything you've got."

About an hour later, Mick and several refugees found themselves tucked behind trees and rocks in the forest, awaiting the arrival of their enemy.

"This is where Gideon predicts Savage to be most vulnerable," the comm chirped in Jax's ear as he rested in the branches of a tall oak tree. It was a message from Rip across the forest. "You must wait to attack until his chief officer leaves to return to the timeship and we have Carter and Kendra. Not a moment before."

"Yeah, yeah, we got this, don't we, Grey," Jax responded.

 _Yes, Jefferson, but remember, precision is key._

Jax looked below him to ensure everyone was in position. Mick's back was pressed against the trunk of a tree, his flamethrower drawn, ready to fire. Rustling in the leaves nearby pulled his attention away, and Jax could see several soldiers in pale green uniforms flanking a tall dark man in a long coat. The jacket of the soldier to Savage's right had several gold stripes lining the buttons on the front, indicating he was the chief officer.

 _Once the chief leaves, there will only be six of them. They are greatly outnumbered._

Stein was right. Firestorm and Heat Wave were accompanied by nine refugees, and soon, would be reunited with four more members of their team.

The chief placed a hand to his ear, most likely receiving a message from another officer. He whispered something to Savage, and turned to leave. As he stepped away, one of the refugees lunged out from behind a tree, firing at Savage and his crew.

 _Shit._

Jax jumped from the branch and fired at one of the soldiers.

"You were supposed to wait for my signal!" he yelled.

The man yelled back, charging at Vandal. "This man killed my family, he will pay!"

Jax flew past them, firing at Savage. The blast knocked him back a couple of feet, and the refugee fired his blaster.

Mick shot his flamethrower in the air, and the rest of the refugees emerged from their hideouts, engaging the enemies in battle.

" _That_ was the signal," Mick grunted as he smacked a man across the face with his heat gun. Another approached him from behind, but Natasha took him down with a blast of her gun before he could attack the thief. He thanked her with a nod and fired at the men who now laid at his feet, burning them to a crisp, before making his way to Savage.

Across the forest, Rip poked his head out from behind a large stone and fired at one of the soldiers guarding the timeship. He tucked himself back behind the rock as the soldier's partner turned in surprise. The guard scanned the woods before him, searching for the source of the laser. When he turned his head toward where Rip was hiding, Ray activated the miniaturization feature on his suit and flew past him, into the ship.

Searching the ship for his kidnapped teammates, Ray laughed to himself as several of the soldiers he passed swatted at him as if he were some kind of insect that flew in from the forest for the sake of annoying them. They got part of it right, though, seeing as he did fly in from the forest, and they were going to be _very_ annoyed once they realized Carter and Kendra had escaped.

"I found them," he said into his comm as he entered a chamber on the ship. His suit enlarged again and Kendra's eyes widened at his sudden appearance. "Missed me?" He grinned.

She smiled back at him. "Ray!"

He quickly sliced the restraints, and she threw her arms around him once she was free. When she pulled away, Kendra turned to Carter and began to cut him out as well.

"Quick, help me," she said, tackling the ones at her partner's feet first.

Ray hesitated. "Is he going to attack you again?"

She shook her head. "We'll be fine."

As they freed Carter, two soldiers stormed the room. Ray held them off with a blast from his gauntlet, and the three evacuated the ship.

As Rip caught sight of them, he shouted, "Looks like our friends attacked Savage a bit too soon. We have to get to them quickly!"

Kendra nodded and turned to Carter. "Ready?" she said. She threw her head back and smiled as her wings sprouted from her shoulder blades. Carter did the same and they took flight, Ray carrying Rip close behind them.

They flew high over the trees so they could spot Savage and their friends. As they approached the small clearing where the fighting was taking place, Rip could see flames blazing from the hands of Firestorm. The group swooped down and landed in the center of the battle.

"Sorry we're late," Rip said.

"Hey, Birdman, take this," Mick yelled, tossing Carter his mace.

Carter caught it and began attacking the soldiers that had filtered in after one of Savage's men sent out a distress call. He charged at one and pounded his mace into the man's chest. The soldier flew backward into a tree and landed in the dirt with a thud. Getting to his feet, the man fired his blaster at Carter, but his laser was deflected when Ray jumped in front of his teammate. The blast was enough to knock Ray backward, but he retained his balance and fired at the soldier. Carter thanked him quickly, and they both turned, startled by a scream from behind them.

Kendra's eyes were wide, and she let out a strangled gasp as Savage tightened his grasp on her. His forearm was pressed tightly against her throat, a knife in his hand, with his other arm holding hers snug against her back.

Ray called to her and she closed her eyes.

"Take one more step, Mr. Palmer, and this dagger slits her throat," the immortal threatened.

Ray retreated a step. He hated that Kendra was in pain, but knew he was powerless to stop it. The Atom made eye contact with Rip across the clearing, and hoped the ex-time master could discern his thoughts from the face he was giving.

Rip brought his wrist to his mouth and began speaking into his comm.

"Gideon, get Sara to bring the Waverider, now!"

* * *

Sara laid on her back in her bed, eyes focused upward, pupils tracing patterns in the grates on the ceiling. Her feet were resting on the board at the foot of her bed, crossing at the ankles. The team had been gone for almost two hours and had not once requested her help. She was bored out of her mind.

Thoughts drifting to those she held dear, she wondered what her father and sister were up to back in 2016. Sara missed them every day. Whenever the team had a spare moment, she would ask Rip to check up on them. Last she heard, Damien Darhk was being held at Iron Heights, her father's testimony moving enough to convince a judge to view the case. Laurel and the rest of Team Arrow had been working day in and day out to find enough evidence to convict Darhk, but H.I.V.E. were professionals, and Darhk now had Malcolm Merlyn on his side.

Malcolm Merlyn. The name brought back so much rage, rage she had taken such careful measures to dispel. Constant meditation and breathing exercises could only do so much, though, and fury often presented itself at the thought of the man who manipulated a dear friend into doing the unthinkable, and ending Sara's life. Her brows furrowed as she recalled the final moments before her death, and the nothingness that followed. Merlyn was the only one to blame for the endless battle within; the bloodlust that polluted her judgement.

She had done well, she thought, with quelling her rage, but sometimes she regressed. Sara was ashamed of losing control when she was sparring with Kendra in the past, and more recently, while disarming the soldier that had shot Snart. Constantine had done much to silence her demons, but when Sara found herself open and emotionally vulnerable, as she had been then, just the thought of losing those she cared for was enough to unhinge her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" a voice drawled from the doorway, startling her.

Sara froze. "About what?"

She watched as Snart limped into the room, back from another recovery session in the medbay, and sat beside her head on the bed. She scooted over a bit to give him more room, but didn't sit up. Her eyes fell back on the ceiling as he looked down at her.

"About the man you almost beat into oblivion before Mick pulled you off." She sighed. "Mick told me. Didn't see it myself, though, seeing as I was too busy getting shot at."

She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. "How did you know I was thinking about that?"

"The guilt on your face. I'd be lying if I said I've never seen it before. Same face you made after you almost executed Stein. Same face I saw in the mirror after freezing my dear ol' daddy, at least for a little while."

"The bastard deserved it," she said, rolling onto her side to face the wall.

"My father? Yes, he did."

She curled her knees toward her chest. "The guard didn't."

Snart feigned a gasp and said, "But he shot me."

That got him a soft chuckle, followed by silence. They sat together for some time. Sara stared at the wall behind her bed, the screen displaying soothing images of various beaches around the world.

"Ever since the Lazarus Pit, I haven't been able to control it, really. I know I've said it before, but," she paused, taking a deep breath. "This isn't who I am."

She pulled herself into an upright position, and pressed her back against the wall. Leonard turned toward her, resting his wrapped leg across the bed. They were facing each other now, and Sara could see the concern etched into his face. Perhaps he did truly think about her in his downtime.

Sara's breath caught in her throat as their eyes met, and Leonard's gaze was unshakable as he spoke.

"And just who are you, Sara?"

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, hesitant. And then, she told him.

She talked about her childhood - who she was before the Gambit. About her mistakes and her regrets, and her accomplishments. Sara told him about her Christmases and birthdays - her favorite memories of her parents and sister. Leonard could tell that family meant everything to Sara, which they seemed to have in common. He hoped when they returned to 2016 he would get to meet them.

She spoke of her time on the brig and Lian Yu, and the guilt she had felt over Shado's death. She talked about finding her way to Nanda Parbat. Memories of Nyssa and Ra's Al Ghul came flooding back, and Leonard listened carefully, noting every detail. He was fascinated with the training and initiation process the League invoked.

"My new name was Ta-er al-Asfer," she said, "It's Arabic for Canary."

He nodded in understanding. "Where did the 'White' come from?"

Sara explained that shortly after her death, her sister had taken over her role as the Black Canary. This was the first time she spoke of it to anyone - truly spoke of it. Tears spilled out without restraint as she thought of a leather-clad Thea Queen, the last thing she saw before she died. The images that had flooded her mind during her fall were of her parents and sister, and of Nyssa. And then, there was nothing. She was completely alone.

Then, suddenly, after an eternity, she had been pulled back. Everything before her had been interpreted as a threat once she emerged from the pit, and her vision had blurred red as she thrashed at those surrounding her. She was a monster.

Recounting the story only brought back the soul crushing terror she had felt, and Sara was shuddering as she spoke. She didn't want to be like this - unable to control her urges, the bloodlust overpowering her desire to be a better person. She didn't want to be a killer, and yet, she had almost taken the life of a man she had never met who was just doing his job. The soldier she had attacked hadn't known any better, she was sure.

"There's no excuse, Leonard. For what I've done. I wanted to be better for Laurel. She told me to be the White Canary - to be a beacon of hope - but there's no redemption for monsters like me."

She wiped away a tear and he grabbed her wrist as her hand fell from her face.

"You're not a monster," he said softly.

She looked up at him. Unreadable expression on his face, he slipped his fingers past her wrist to hold her hand in his. She wasn't sure when exactly he scooted closer to her, but was grateful, for often times she found his presence was enough to help keep the anger at bay. That was a scary realization for her, but she'd deal with what it meant for them later.

"You're strong, Sara. You can fight this. You've done it before - I've seen it." he said, leaning closer to her.

His tender gaze broke when their eyelids fluttered closed. With their faces just inches apart, Sara could feel his warm breath on her still wet cheeks.

"Captain Hunter requires your assistance, Miss Lance," Gideon interrupted.

Sara shot up out of her seated position while Leonard grunted and looked at the ceiling.

"Seriously? This again?" he whispered.

"Come on," she said, "the team needs us."

* * *

Rip looked around him. Three of the refugees had been taken out by Savage's men, and several others needed immediate medical attention. He hoped they could hold Savage off long enough for Sara to get his message.

"Let her go!" Ray commanded.

Vandal Savage laughed. "I'm going to enjoy killing you in front of both of your lovers, Chay-Ara."

Ray and Carter glanced at each other for a moment, then turned back to Savage. Kendra squirmed against him as he trailed the blade along her jaw. Suddenly, the trees swayed behind them as a heavy wind picked up the leaves at their feet. All in the clearing looked to the sky as the Waverider appeared above them, slowly descending, then hovering over the treetops.

"Looks like our ride is here," Mick said. Taking advantage of the distraction Sara provided, he aimed at Savage and pulled the trigger, as Kendra pulled her legs out from beneath her, forcing Savage to stumble forwards, right into the line of Mick's blast. His grip on her loosened as his overcoat caught fire, so Kendra knocked his arms away and drilled her heel into the back of his calf. His knee buckled and that was all Kendra needed to deliver a heavy blow to the side of his head.

Ray and Rip opened fire as Kendra sidestepped to avoid them, and began ushering the refugees onto the ship. Once they were all on board, she turned to see Carter swinging his mace at Savage's head. The blow caused heavy vibrations that rippled outwards from the point of contact, knocking Savage onto his back. More soldiers stormed the clearing, so Rip commanded everyone left to board the Waverider.

"What about Savage?" Jax asked, as he held off several enemies.

"We'll get to him soon enough. Remember, Jax, this was a rescue mission first!" Rip responded as he climbed into the ship. Jax followed, and once inside, closed the hatch. Rip yelled to Gideon to pilot the ship away as Jax and Martin split.

"Anyone who needs medical attention please follow Dr. Stein to the medbay!" Rip requested, before heading toward the control room.

Sara was sitting in the pilot's seat, which had turned toward the center of the room once the ship had escaped the fighting. With a smug grin on her face, Rip could tell as he walked in that she was proud of herself.

"Excellent timing, Sara."

She was about to respond as heavy footsteps approached Rip from behind. He turned to be met with the palm of a petite woman, who yelled, "Where the hell is my daughter, Hunter?" Rip stumbled backward as she continued, waving a finger in his face. "You promised to rescue her but you only came back with your crew!"

"What's going on?" Leonard drawled, casually striding into the room.

"She's eight years old! She must be terrified!"

Sara stood and made her way to the woman's side, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll get her back, won't we, Rip?"

He responded to Sara's glare with a shudder and a nod.

Several minutes later, Rip and Leonard were standing around the table in the center of the control room as Sara comforted Natasha in Rip's office. Rip could see the woman was distraught. Her jeans were ripped and her boots were scuffed, button down shirt tattered and worn. Sara was rubbing circles on the woman's back. She looked across the room toward Rip and Snart.

The thief gave her a half smile before the two looked away from one another. Leonard turned back to Rip and said, "So how do we get her little girl back?"

"I've placed a tracker in Savage's ship. Even with the advanced stealth the Time Masters provided him with, we'll be able to find him. He won't know it, but he'll be leading us right to her. If one of the refugees had waited for the signal, we could have taken Savage out then and there but he was too aggressive and we missed our chance." He placed his hands on the table and leaned over it, exhaling slowly as he examined the data from the tracker on the screen atop the table.

"Savage is on the move."

* * *

Rip and Leonard stayed aboard the ship as the rest of the time travelers disembarked to engage Savage. The tracker led them to a brig off the coast of Iceland, where the team assumed the immortal held most of his captives. Kendra and Firestorm circled above the ship as Ray and Carter, with Sara and Mick on their backs, descended on the soldiers.

Sara could hear Rip's voice from the comm in her ear. "I trust you won't make me regret letting you back in the field," he said.

"I told you, I'm fine. Now get me to the cells."

From the plans Gideon found, Rip was able to direct Sara through the ship, and Mick followed. Together they were able to knock out any guards that stood in their way, and soon enough, they reached the prison. The room was large, perhaps the length of a football field, and the walls were lined with cells, the prisoners ranging in age from children to elderly men and women.

The guards noticed their entrance quickly and began to attack. Sara dove to the left as Mick slid to the right, firing back at them. She used his flames as cover and engaged one of the soldiers, whipping her bo staff at him. It knocked against his ribs and she spun to strike him again, this time in the side of the head. He went down hard as one of his partners lunged at Sara from behind. The contact propelled her forward and she landed on her knees. Quickly, she lifted her right leg and placed the heel of her boot on the floor. As the guard lunged at her a second time, she used her planted foot to thrust her shoulder into his groin. Pushing up from beneath him, she lifted the man off of his feet and flung him to the ground.

Several feet away, Mick was engaging several soldiers at once, alternating between heat gun and fists. She joined him by attacking the guard to his left with her staff. She swung and the end of the rod connected with the man's shoulder. She pulled back to whip it at his head, but as Sara struck, he caught the end of her staff and pulled her to him before landing a kick to her gut. Stumbling backward, her head smacked against the bars of the cell behind her.

"Sara! Are you alright? Can you hear me?" She head Rip say into the comm as her vision faded in and out, the ground cold beneath her. "Snart? Where are you going? You haven't recovered yet!"

The man descended on her, landing multiple kicks to her ribs before Mick took him down with a smack to the back of the head with his gun. He fought off several more soldiers with his heat gun, and Sara welcomed the warmth of the flame. Firing left and right, he was able to keep Sara protected until she got to her feet. Stumbling a bit, she used the bars of the cell behind her to help herself up. Her hand went to the back of her head, where a large bump was forming. She rubbed it and picked her staff up off the floor.

"I'm okay," she said, not very confidently.

Blinking away the disorientation, Sara could see flashes of red and yellow crossing her field of vision as the soldiers guarding the cells surrounded them. To her left she could see the doors of the prison opening, and through the gap, a soldier fell to the ground and skidded several feet away, surely due to the shot of a blaster or laser.

Snart stepped in slowly, his coldgun raised. Mick grunted a greeting and continued to attack. Sara lunged at one of guards, landing several punches and receiving some in return. Snart strided to her side and assisted in taking out the remaining guards.

Breathing heavily, the trio surveyed the room to ensure all of the soldiers were unconscious. Sara searched the bodies for the keys while Leonard and Mick began freeing captives, melting and freezing the bars to break them out. When she found the keys she joined them, and, once all of the prisoners were out of their cells, a little girl stepped forward.

"Thank you for saving us," she said, smiling. Her two front teeth were missing, and her brown hair was tied into a messy knot behind her head. "Do you know where my mommy is?"

Sara crouched down to be at eye level with the girl. "Is your mommy Natasha?" she asked, and the little girl nodded. "We're going to get you back to her, okay?"

"Everyone, follow me," Snart said, turning on his heel to lead the captives to the Waverider. Mick lifted the little girl and carried her out of the room as Sara fell to the back of the group to ensure everyone escaped. The fighting on the surface had ended before they reached their teammates, and as Leonard ushered the refugees onto the timeship, Kendra emerged from below deck to tell the team that Savage was not on board.

"That's impossible, his tracker said he was here!" Ray said.

"Well clearly he misled us, Raymond," Snart responded.

At the end of the line of civilians was Mick, carrying the little girl, who smiled and waved at Kendra and Ray as she passed. The team boarded the timeship, leaving several of the refugees on the brig to use its resources against Savage's forces. They hoped to take as many weapons as they could from the boat back to their camps to, hopefully, lead one final rebellion.

Sara searched the room for Snart, but could not find his face among the sea of survivors. Though she was glad they had enough survivors to call it a 'sea', she had other things which needed to be addressed. As Stein and Carter herded them to the medbay and bedrooms to rest, Sara made her way with Mick, Jax, Kendra and Ray back to the control room.

As they entered the room, Rip stepped forward to congratulate them on a job well done. Snart was standing beside him, casually leaning against the back of a jumpseat. She bolted toward him.

Rip ignored her and said, "We'll bring them back to their camps and provide them with enough aid to-"

"What the hell, Snart?" Sara yelled as she shoved Leonard's shoulders. He stumbled backward, confusion plastered across his face.

"Wha-"

All eyes were on her as she shoved him again. "You could have gotten yourself killed!"

"I can see you're not very good with thank you's so I guess we'll skip that part," he retorted. "You're welcome."

"You were in no condition to go out there! You've still got a hole in your leg, you idiot!" She knocked his chest with her fist, and it stayed there, resting against his jacket.

"Sara, I was not about to let you-"

Silenced by the crash of her lips on his, Leonard froze for a moment. Then, his eyes closed and his hand snaked up her back, an open palm pressing lightly at the space between her shoulder blades. She gripped at his jacket to pull him closer, her mouth moving slowly over his. Leonard's other hand found its way into her hair and she groaned into the kiss.

His lips parted at the sound and she wrapped her free arm around his shoulders to pull him closer. He deepened the kiss and with one hand slowly sliding from her hair to cup her cheek, Leonard ran the other along her side, finally resting it on her hip. His tongue moved over hers slowly as he pulled her tighter to him. Their lips parted and the two breathed heavily, foreheads resting together.

After pulling away, she glared at him. "I told you, I can't lose you again, you jerk."

Leonard glanced over her shoulder to see the mouths of Kendra, Ray, and Jax drop open.

"I did _not_ see that coming," Ray whispered to Mick, who just stood with a smirk on his face.

* * *

Martin led the little girl to Sara and Kendra's room. When the doors slid open, the girl's eyes lit up at the sight of her mother sitting across the room on Sara's bed. Natasha jumped to her feet when they entered.

"Valeria!" she said as she ran to her daughter. Natasha fell to her knees in front of the little girl and ran her hands over her daughter's face and shoulders. "Are you okay, my love?"

"Yes, mommy. Mr. Stein and Micky took very good care of me!" the girl said, before being pulled into her mother's arms. Natasha rubbed soothing circles over her daughter's back, looking up at Stein and mouthing the words 'thank you'.

Backing out of the room to give the family some privacy, Stein thought to himself of all the difficulties he had braved on this ship. They may not have defeated Savage, and have without a doubt faced many complications on their missions to do so, but days like this, where the joy outweighs the heartache, made it all worth it.

When they returned to the rebel camp all of the refugees exited the ship, save for Natasha and her daughter, who approached Rip and Mick with smiles on their faces. The girl was tightly hugging her mother's leg as the woman stroked her hair.

"Thank you, Captain Hunter. I don't know what I would do without her. She is everything to me," the woman said, her kind eyes overflowing with gratitude. "And you, Mick. Val has not stopped talking about you."

Mick smiled and crouched down to Val's level. "Stay brave, kiddo," he said, before lightly knocking her shoulder with his massive fist. She nodded and pulled a small scrap of paper from her pocket, tucking it into his. Mick stood and backed away as Natasha and Val disembarked the timeship.

"I know Savage is still out there," Ray said, coming up from behind his captain, "but I'd consider today a victory."

"As do I, Mr. Palmer. Let's just hope tomorrow yields another."


End file.
